Does one really need a good explanation to
visit The Eternal City? Not really - everybody with a sense
of history or culture or architecture should visit this City
of Splendours at least once during a lifespan, where
attractions stand in line after one another. One visit could
easily lead to another as well, whether you toss a coin into
the Fontana di Trevi or not. The time had come to visit The
Eternal City. A map, a guidebook and some hotel browsing was
done beforehand, and the Radisson SAS Es hotel was chosen,
both due to its very convenient location as well as its well
known standard.

Going

The flight from Oslo took 3h 15 minutes,
and the flight left at 8:30 in the morning, so a stopover at
the Radisson SAS Gardermoen Airport Hotel was a sensible
thing to do. The breakfast they serve starts at 5:00 in the
morning, and is very extensive (as is common for this
chain). It was seriously cold when Gardermoen was left
behind - being in the end of March, the water puddles froze
during the evening. The flight down was quite bumpy,
probably due to switching between climate zones, as the
temperature at the destination was around 20°C. Rome`s
international Fiumicino (or Leonardo da Vinci) airport was a
pleasant surprise and didn`t have a typical Italian feel to
it (interpret it as you like ;)
However, things were soon back to normal as the Leonardo
"Express" was boarded and the course was set for
Roma Termini (Rome`s central train station). This express
train could barely have travelled above 60 km/h at any time,
often moving a lot slower and several times coming to
complete stops for reasons unknown. The ride took more than
45 minutes, and would for us foreigners not qualify for the
title of `airport express train`.

Arrival & day 1

The hotel was very conveniently located
right outside the exit from the platform where the airport
(express) train arrives. Still, a scenic road was chosen, as
the hotel sign wasn`t visible from the station exit, leading
to a bit of dragging of suitcases along the station area.
Once inside, the reception shows the first signs of this
being a `design` style hotel. It is very airy and spacious
however, so it is a nice introduction. The reservation
confirmation was a-ok, but upon entering the supplied room,
it was obvious that it was not yet ready (a too early
arrival at 14-15 or so?), so another room was supplied,
which was luckily ready for `boarding` - referring to the
design of the hotel, which is like an upside down ship. The
rooms also show this clearly, as the floors resemble
woodboards on a ship, and the side of the bed rises into an
s-shaped curve of wooden boards - watch your bare feet here.
More design-ish interior: an LCD TV, a lamp which fills up
with gas once you turn it on, and a bathroom light which is
controlled by a circular metal touchscreen. And no wardrobe
- just an open rack for your clothes. The room itself was
the smallest I have experienced with this hotel chain (6
visited so far), a third of which is occupied by the
bathroom, which is spacious enough in itself. The roof
terrace is an experience though. Formed like the bottom of a
ship, it houses a swimming pool (only open during the
summer) and commands a nice view over the station and the
red rooftops around. It is a great place to rise above the
traffic, absorb some sun, and relax after a hectic day of
sightseeing.

Even though the hotel is close to the
central railway station, it is less noisy than expected -
after all, Roma Termini is Europe`s largest railway station,
and the main building seems to cover an area at least half a
kilometre in length.

It was time for a bit of sightseeing, and it was already
late afternoon, so the trip would have to be somewhat
limited. According to the map, Colosseum and Forum Romanum
should be close, so this would be the chosen destination. In
fact, many of Rome`s most famous sights are within walking
distance of one another - the Centro Storico or historical
centre isn`t that big. Indeed, after only a few minutes of
walking, the hulking walls of the Colosseum were visible at
the far end of the road. It was an even more impressive
sight than expected, and once there, the actual structure
dwarfed any picture one might have in mind about how big it
would actually be. There was a huge queue to get in there,
yet the one where you got an audio guide was strangely
empty. The choice was then obvious, as the audio guide is
considered somewhat optional depending on your interest in
details about the place. Parts of the arena floor had been
rebuilt, which was not expected, as I recall no picture
showing this. The actual arena was smaller than expected,
but the side walls were still an impressive sight, as was
the depth and extension of the room/hallway system beneath
the arena, almost like a small catacomb area in itself. This
area was used for housing animals, gladiators and theatrical
scenery, as well as elevators and pulleys for easy access to
it all. It has been said that the arena could even be
flooded rapidly through the use of a nearby aqueduct, for
creating replicas of sea battles.

The Colosseum was built in AD 70-80 by Emperor Vespasian
(finished after his death by his son Titus) and was
originally named Amphitheatrum Flavium. Its opening was
celebrated by 100 days of continuous slaughtering of
animals, christians (heathens) and gladiatorial battles. It
was said that the stench of rotting carcasses was only
superseded by the scent of the women`s perfumes.
It measures 189 by 156 by 48 metres, and much of the
structure has suffered damage over its nearly 2000 years of
existence, such as earthquakes, fires and plundering of
stone. Some scaffolding at the top of the outer wall was
visible, although it seemed small compared to the structure
itself. Just outside stands the Arch of Constantine, one of
many triumphal arches in the vicinity, most of which are
inside the Forum Romanum area, which lies just next to and
on each side of the Via dei Fori Imperiali road. It was
already 19 in the evening, therefore a bit late to pay a
visit, so a stroll was made down the road instead towards
the Piazza Venezia and the hulking monument to the first
king of a unified Italy, Vittorio Emmanuel II, and was
finished in 1925. It is 70 metres tall and 135 metres wide,
and houses the Tomb of the Unnamed Soldier. Various
none-too-complimenting names have been given to it by the
natives, for example "the wedding cake". It does
indeed light up when compared to the nearby buildings which
are mostly grey or brown, and doesn`t look too beautiful
next to the ancient ruins of the Forum area.

Dinner was done in a nearby Chinese cafe-style place,
nothing fancy, but good and inexpensive food, and it is
always a safe bet, in case you don`t want to sample the
local cuisine.

Day 2: Via Appia Antica and
Catacombs...but where is the ancient road?

A full day was set aside for visiting the
Via Appia Antica, which according to pictures and brochures
seemed almost like a natural park with several ruins along
the way, in addition to a possibility to visit the famous
catacombs (of which Rome has many separate in various
places). It would however prove to be a challenge to
actually get there, and another experience with `the Italian
way`.

But first..the breakfast at the hotel
deserves special mention. Of the places I have stayed so
far, this surpasses them all - the variety and selection of
foodstuff was simply amazing - and everything was top
quality - especially the fresh fruit (kiwi, pineapple etc),
and they even had champagne or white wine (did not try
this..a bit too early for alcohol consumption!) It did
however come at a hefty price tag - EUR 26 per person.

At first, the so-called Archeobus would be the obvious
choice to go for - a hop-on, hop-off route which went around
the Appian road, so this one was sought out right in front
of the Termini station, at the Piazza dei Cinquecento, which
is the main bus station. Asking for a ticket at the bus was
returned with a not-too eager pointing out of the ticket
office, to which there was a huge line. No choice obviously,
but to get in there. While standing in the queue, an
official tourist helper of some sort came and asked what
kind of ticket was wanted.
"Oh, for the Archeobus you can buy it directly on the
bus!".
"No, that was refused".
"Ok, sometimes you can buy a ticket directly on the
bus".
Oh well..he was trying to help at least. Finally reaching
the ticket counter, the conclusion from the seller was that
the upcoming bus was full. But maybe come back in an hour or
so and if you are lucky you can get a ticket for the next
one. Right..after all, time does not pass by when you wait,
only when you go sightseeing.

A return trip to the hotel to ask for help there was done.
They came up with a route for getting to the start of the
Via Appia Antica, yet two separate bus journeys were given.
After a bit of fiddling with the printed papers, it turned
out the first leg was getting to the bus station outside
Termini! That was really not necessary, so another trip was
made back there. Newspaper/tobacco kiosks/stands sell bus
and tram tickets - you can`t buy them on the bus or at the
ticket office either. At least it is simple enough (and
cheap - 1 euro per ticket) once you know how the system
works, although it may at times be confusing. Checking the
map carefully while being southward bound, the correct stop
was reached, and it was time to check the guidebook.

The bus stop was near a big area of ancient thermal baths,
but no sign saying anything about the Appian way. Something
was wrong here..it didn`t quite match with the guidebook
either, and after a bit of pondering and head scratching, it
was concluded that the guidebook was wrong - two almost
identical road names misplaced. Finally, the Porta di San
Sebastiano was reached, which marked the start of the Via
Appia Antica, and the beginning of the Aurelian wall. From
here, the Via went straight south, but..heavy traffic marred
the experience to say the least. This was nothing like the
expected natural park. No pavement and high speed cars
turned the walk into a somewhat dangerous and dusty
experience. After quite a bit of walking, an area resembling
a park was reached - near the Catacombe di San Sebastiano.
These would be visited but...it was closed for siesta
between 12 and 14. More waiting to do..at least the weather
was nice and the traffic was more remote.

The visit to the catacombs proved to be an exciting
experience - it is almost unimaginable that these catacombs
alone house 500.000 graves! With all its stairs and
labyrinthine network, it is no wonder that tourists are only
allowed inside on a guided tour. One slight quirk - the
guide at some point spoke a few Italian words, with the
conclusion that since we all (foreign tourists) were going
to Italy, we really should learn some Italian. I was
suggested to ask if she would learn some Chinese if she
would go on a short shopping trip to Beijing..I know
Italians who visit Norway don`t learn Norwegian beforehand,
so why should there be different rules for us? Italian is
only spoken in Italy after all, and is not considered a
world language by far.

After the trip it was time for the fun of cars rushing by at
excessive speeds again while clinging to the narrow road,
which sides were blocked by walls. Upon reaching the Porta
di San Sebastiano, this one was entered and the traffic
inside was much less than that outside, due to it being a
one-lane road.

All in all, it was amazing to see how much of this day was
wasted with waiting, fiddling, searching and head
scratching. There could have been more signs around as well,
that is for sure. Finding a place to eat outside the tourist
centres at lunchtime isn`t easy either, since they will
either be completely absent, or closed until the evening.

Day 3 - Long excursion!

On the day before it was decided to book a
place on a guided tour to Pompeii. The weather forecast was
promising, and indeed on the next day, the weather was
absolutely marvellous. The chosen tour was one from the
company `Appian Lina`, and they arranged with pick-up
shuttle buses from the various hotels to their starting
location. Unfortunately, the pick-up was so early that there
was no chance for a breakfast, but a small breakfast bag was
instead fixed from the hotel`s side at no additional cost
(kudos to them for that). There was quite a bit of wait
before the actual bus left from the Appian Line office, in
between which the ticket was paid for (105 EUR per person).
Once on the bus, a disappointing sign showed that no
consumption of food or drink was allowed on board. That`s
all fine with Italians, who barely gulp down an espresso and
on a lucky day a glass of orange juice in the morning, but
for tourists who are used to real breakfasts, it was the
first let-down of the trip. After more than an hour, the bus
stopped at a local cafe, and by this time stomachs were
growling all around. There was barely enough time to consume
the contents of the breakfast package, since Italians don`t
eat much breakfast anyway, and we as tourists still had to
follow this principle.

The guide for the day was a substitute, as the regular one
was on sick leave. She was a bit uninspiring in her
description of the tour and the countryside, and not much of
what was said is recalled now. After 3 hours, we arrived in
Napoli (Naples), and the side we came in via is the most
ugly part of a city that I have ever seen, even making the
back alleys of Saigon look like green parks. Indescribably
ugly building blocks, huge amounts of litter and scrap lying
around, no seeming attempt at preserving buildings before
they fall down, chaotic traffic and poor roads all added to
the impression.

One can only smile at the irony of the expression `see
Naples and die - Vedi Napoli e poi Muori`, an expression
used during the city`s golden age in the 18th century, as it
was a sovereignity on its own. The expression means that you
must see the beauty of Naples before you die - now, one
would be more inclined to think that parts of Naples is so
ugly that you will die from shock after having seen it.

The historical centre is better though, along with the area
by the Bay of Napoli. We picked up a local historian/guide
on the way, and he told a bit about the city, after which we
had a stop by the bay, which was so far the most pleasant
experience of the tour. After four hours, some of the
tourists on the bus were getting impatient (americans), and
asked if the tour actually did go to Pompeii. I would agree
with them to some extent at this point - this is what we
would want to see after all. Some 30 km along the bay area
lies the town of Pompeii itself, now a modern town adjacent
to the historical ruin. We stopped for lunch at a local
restaurant here, where we were served the most disappointing
meal I have ever had in Italy. Wine and coffee came at an
additional cost, which they forgot to mention until after
you had been served it.

Finally the time had come to enter the ruins themselves.
Somewhat sadly, no amnesty was given to walk independently
of the group - one would miss out on the actual tour, it was
said, but there would be enough time given to roam around
after the guiding was complete, which took some two hours
but was quite interesting mostly. The ruins themselves are a
wonderful experience - the town feels almost as if it had
been abandoned recently, even nearly two thousand years
after its day of doom, when Mt Vesuvius decided to wipe it
out on a fateful day in AD 79. It shot out millions of
tonnes of rock and debris, but what caused the majority of
deaths in Pompeii and nearby Herculaneum was when the
volcanic ash column collapsed on itself and created a
so-called pyroclastic surge, which travels at a speed of
well over 100 km/h and has a temperature of 500°C,
instantly incinerating and vaporizing all organic material
it touches. This was also how the gruesome replicas of the
bodies could be re-created: as they were covered in hot ash
and stone, while the flesh of the bodies vaporized, the
cavity they had filled remained, so that these could be
filled up again with gypsum or whatnot.

Pompeii was rediscovered in the late 18th century, and dug
out since from the ash and rock that buried it, which is why
so much of it is still well preserved - frescoes and floor
mosaic look beautiful still. And no part of the town is shut
off - one can walk into people`s houses and try to imagine
everyday life 2000 years ago - usually that is, as the `red
light district` was under restoration, to the disappointment
of some (though I doubt any services are performed there
nowadays).

After the guiding was complete, we were left with 20 minutes
of time on our own before returning to the bus. Not much to
cover the rest of the town, including the large amphitheatre
at the other end, so some time was spent at a quiet corner
of the Forum area. Then it was back to the bus again, which
was to meet with and pick up some tourists from a two-day
trip to Sorrento. The organisation was done in true Italian
style as we were getting used to by now, meaning there was
waiting time - and a lot of it. The other group was delayed
by more than half an hour, and it felt irritating to say the
least to have to twiddle your thumbs on the bus for this
long when you were so strictly ordered to return in time.
Finally it was time for the return trip - another 3+ hours
on the densely trafficked autostrada. After 14 hours of day
trip, it was good to return to the haven of the rooftop
terrace of the hotel!

Day 4 - "How to do Rome in one
day"

The above heading is a bit of an
exaggeration though - but a lot was covered by doing the
chosen route, thus: took the `A` subway from Roma Termini to
the station named Ottaviano - San Pietro. From here, it was
a relatively short walk to the border of the Vatican state,
which is indeed a sovereign state in the middle of Rome, the
world`s smallest, and the most holy of places for catholics.
It is guarded by the well known Swiss guards - although they
look a bit like clowns in their costumes, these are all well
trained soldiers. Instead of aiming for the Vatican museums,
a direct course was set for the Basilica di San Pietro (St
Peter`s Basilica). Getting through to the enormous piazza
was like getting through security at an airport - a
necessary `evil` of sorts. The piazza itself is indeed huge,
yet with all the colonnades and other large buildings
around, the cathedral doesn`t look quite as big as one would
imagine at first. Still, it is difficult for the eye to
comprehend the actual scale of the surroundings once one is
right in the middle of St Peter`s Square.

It was a wednesday, and the `new` Pope had chosen this as
his appear-to-the-public day, so we came in the middle of a
crowd of devoted visitors, and managed to get a glimpse of
him driving around (although not by himself) and listening
to bits and pieces of the mass in various languages
(including latin). Therefore, there was no access to the
Basilica either, which was a bit of a letdown - with the
great weather, a visit to the top of the cupola would have
been quite an experience.

Since the visit to the Vatican state was this short, it
would have to be considered for a possible return trip. The
walk continued out from the piazza to the Castel Sant
Angelo. This was originally built as a mausoleum for emperor
Hadrian, from AD 135-139. It was turned into a military
fortress in around AD 400, before it was finally converted
to a castle in the 14th century by the popes, and was
connected to St Peter`s Basilica by a fortified corridor.

The bridge leading over the Tiber is also worth a stroll -
take a picture of the statue covered bridge with the castle
in the background, just ignore the crowd of lined-up
salespeople - they are there because this is a tourist area.
A short walk along the Tiber, and you pass the courthouse,
which is quite large and pompous. Next on the list was the
Piazza Navona, a very pleasant and huge open circular place,
originally a circus in the 1st century. It is a pedestrian
area and its main features are three fountains, the dominant
being the central Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Four Rivers
Fountain), which is a tribute to the four great rivers of
the world: the Nile, Ganges, Danube and Rio de la Plata (why
not the Amazon I wonder). The piazza`s circumference is
dotted with cafes and restaurants - again, a typical tourist
area, yet pleasantly shielded from traffic.

The Pantheon was also paid a visit. This monumental building
was originally a temple to the seven deities of the seven
planets in the state religion of ancient Rome, but has been
a church since the 7th century. It is the best-preserved of
all ancient Roman buildings, even though the one standing is
not the original one, which was destroyed in a fire in AD
80, and the "new" one is from AD 125. The domed
ceiling is an impressive sight, and with the open circle at
the top - the Oculus (Great Eye), often results in some
atmospheric lighting inside. The height from the floor to
the top of the dome is exactly the same as the diameter of
the interior - 43.3 metres. The oculus serves as a free
ventilation system, as it creates a slight suction from the
ground entrance when wind passes over it.
Vittorio Emmanuel II`s sarcophagus is visible in the wall in
the interior of the church/temple.

A short stop for lunch was added, also in a pedestrian area,
and a bowl of minestrone soup was enjoyed in the pleasant
springy sunshine while watching parts of the world pass by.
After this, it was time to visit the Fontana di Trevi (Trevi
Fountain), yet another well known place. As fountain
decorations go, this is a very large one, yet it is the
statue against the wall that is impressive, not the fountain
itself. According to legend, if you toss a coin into the
fountain, chances are good you will return to Rome. I have a
theory that you are able to return even without doing this,
and presume to be able to prove it during the spring of
2008.

The Piazza d`Espagna (Spanish Steps) was paid a short visit,
but was not a very impressive sight, as the church on top
had fallen victim to the everlasting Curse of The
Scaffolding, which seems to be present all around. Truth be
told, all such major structures require more or less
continuous restoration work, so it is mostly on postcards
you will not see them (perhaps they have been digitally
removed even :)
The piazza is a much loved place for people watching, and
one pair stood out amidst the rest - an elderly U.S. couple
where the man wore a screaming yellow suit, yet prize of the
year for most ghastly outfit went to the woman, who dressed
as if she were in her thirties, and even if she had been
thirty, it would have been a revolting attire. Barely able
to walk on her high heels, she was guided down the stairs by
her hubby. Also, the amount of make-up and facelifts
performed would probably put even the most spoiled movie
star to shame, yet the downside of such vanity is that your
skin will eventually protest to such unkind treatment, and
it showed all too well here.

The walk was a rather long one, yet with all the pauses and
sights and the lunchtime break, it didn`t feel quite as
taxing for the feet as one might usually experience. Also,
walking along some narrow cobblestoned streets where Vespas
are lined up in a throng has its charm and is a good relief
from the more trafficked roads. Dinner? The local chinese
cafe, of course :)

The evening was spent doing another trip
offered by the Appian Line tour company. It was a 2-hour
roundtrip called `Illuminated Rome`, where most of the major
sights were passed by, yet no time was given for photography
apart from the two stops that required walking to get to:
Piazza Navona and Fontana di Trevi. These were very
impressive at night, yet the Fontana di Trevi experience was
marred by some very obtrusive tourist trappers. Seemingly
pleasantly flattering at first, one of them was even visibly
offended a tacky stunt failed and there was no sale (read:
tourist not so easily tricked).

Other sights that were passed which
weren`t visited during the day (maybe next time) were Circo
Massimo (Circus Maximus), and a 2400 year old temple site
which was under excavation. One of the most impressive
sights was the wedding cake monument to Vittorio Emmanuel
II, which when illuminated, was a completely different sight
than during the day. This should warrant a return trip alone
- by foot and with a tripod for the camera :)
The guide was very informative and humorous, as well as
well-spoken in several languages (English, German and
Spanish), so this trip gave a better impression of the
company than the Pompeii one.

The Termini station was also good to have
nearby to drop by for a snack or coffee break, and on one
night, a hot chocolate was ordered - this must have been the
equivalent of the espresso, as the spoon was able to stand
upright in the liquid!

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